After dive watches, I would hazard a guess that pilot watches are the next most popular style – in general – of watches. And if they aren’t, they have to be in the top 5, just based on the sheer number of models that I have seen released. A lot of these tend to come from the more established brands, or those with a particular history with aviation watches. What I have not noticed near as much are pilot-style watches coming from independent brands, especially those using Kickstarter to get the ball rolling. As you might guess, that’s where we find the MEW Depth Pilot.
Want to go Dutch? It is always fun to uncover a new (at least new to me) brand, so it was fun to uncover the Florijn Dive watches from this small Dutch brand. The watches are supposed to represent Dutch design aesthetics, simple and powerful with clean lines, no frills and solid functionality. I think on most of these points they hit the mark.
Start counting your pennies because the Sinn 356 Flieger II Sa on a strap deserves your attention and maybe your money. I found this copper-beauty at the WatchBuys.com road show and it reminds me why Sinn watches (pronounced Zinn) is a brand to consider.
Do you have a medical professional in your life? How about someone aspiring to be a medical professional? While the practice of checking one’s pulse manually has fallen by the wayside with modern medical devices, it can’t hurt to have a very hand backup device, or just own something that pays homage to that tradition. The Christopher Ward C9 Pulsometer Limited Edition Chronometer makes it easy to measure a heartbeat. And it is a pretty nice looking watch to boot.
I don’t know when blue dials went from being a relative rarity to being very popular, but I am not complaining. Maybe we should be wondering why blue dials were never as well represented as they are now. Regardless, the Steinhart Marine Officer Blue is another watch option if you like the blue dial, and it represents a pretty decent bargain to boot.
Deep Blue is one of those brands that I’ve had to admire from afar. I have not run across anyone who owns one, and it simply has not worked out for us to get one in for review. That said, even from the pictures, there is something of an allure to what the brand produces. Their latest, the Deep Blue Diver Pro, follows along in that same vein.
Patrick and I have both had a chance to check out Borealis dive watches in the past, and we both have been left with the impression that the brand is producing great value dive watches. This trend look to be continuing with the Borealis Seafarer II, now on pre-order from the brand and scheduled for delivery in May/June 2016.
There are a couple of American brands that we have been able to forge relationships with here at WWR, and I am proud to say that Detroit Watch Company is one of those. This is the second of their watches I have been able to check out in person, the first being the 1701. Let’s just say I liked that watch, so I had high hopes for the Detroit Watch Co M1 Woodward. At least for me, they are now 2-0 (can’t say the Lions are doing that well, sorry Patrick).
Lew and Huey is a brand that I look to when I want to talk about the potential success of the crowd funded marketplace. The brand began on Kickstarter, with multiple watches launched on that platform, all well received. I put the brand in the category of “friend of the site,” and they are always happy to send us information on upcoming watches and then lend us review copies when they are available. I first wrote up the Phantom in April, and now I have a chance to take a two of the three options out for a test drive.
I know we keep saying that we are going to limit our coverage of minimalist quartz watches, but it seems that the limit on what can be done with this simple formula has not yet be met. Take the Santis and Berg Vertice, a two hander that uses Eastern Arabic numerals for the chapter ring. Here is a watch design that truly is hard to find on the market, at least outside of the Middle East, and something that should appeal to quite a number of people.